Frank Appel: "Companies that do not embrace corporate responsibility as an integral part of their business model will not be as successful in the long run"

Deutsche Post DHL presented its annual Corporate Responsibility Report 2011 today to coincide with Corporate Responsibility Day. The wide-ranging measures of the three core programs GoGreen, GoHelp and GoTeach once again proved effective under the motto "Living Responsibility." For example, the company took another step toward its long-term climate protection goal by improving its CO2 efficiency by two index points. By 2020, Deutsche Post DHL aims to improve its CO2 efficiency and that of its service partners by 30 percent.

The company already reached its interim goal of a 10 percent efficiency improvement - originally targeted for 2012 - two years ago. Frank Appel, Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Post DHL , was correspondingly pleased about the further improvement in the company's environmental balance: "One of our central tasks as a globally operating, stock-market-listed company is to create a balance between economic success on the one hand and social objectives on the other hand."

Last year a total of 134,000 tons of CO2 emissions were offset by the CO2-neutral shipping service GOGREEN. The company has thus offset some 270,000 tons of CO2 emissions for its customers since 2006. The GOGREEN offering was further expanded in 2011, and now also includes CO2 reports and consultancy. Through its GoTeach activities, furthermore, Deutsche Post DHL last year intensified and expanded its cooperation with international organizations such as Teach For All and SOS Children's Villages. Through the GoHelp program, employees of Deutsche Post DHL were deployed following natural disasters in New Zealand and El Salvador.

Employee engagement increased

In addition, the prevention program "Get Airports Ready for Disaster" was implemented last year at four airports in Bangladesh and Indonesia. Employee participation in charitable projects also increased in 2011: some 60,000 employees in 120 countries around the world took part in "Global Volunteer Day" in September 2011, volunteering their time to support social and environmental projects.

"Companies that do not embrace corporate responsibility as an integral part of their business model will not be as successful in the long run," added Appel.

"We continuously evolve our company programs - GoGreen, GoHelp and GoTeach - as part of our 'Living Responsibility' strategy and attempt to integrate as many employees as possible. The importance of corporate responsibility has increased further in our company. Customers, investors and international organizations recognize this, too," says Rainer Wend, Executive Vice President Corporate Public Policy and Corporate Responsibility.

Panel dicussion: "From success story of the western world to 'phase-out model': Is capitalism in crisis?"*

Focus on demographic change

Simultaneously with the publication of the Corporate Responsibility Report 2011, Deutsche Post DHL is holding a Corporate Responsibility Day for the second time at its headquarters in Bonn. In panels and workshops, prominent experts are discussing the relevance, trends and challenges in the area of sustainable corporate management. The focus of last year’s event was on energy-efficient management and equal opportunity. This year’s activities centered around the challenges presented by demographic change and a differentiated approach to the current discussion surrounding capitalism.

In addition to Frank Appel and Rainer Wend, this year’s experts included Klaus Töpfer, former German Environment Minister and former Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme; Wilfried Vyslozil, Chairman SOS-Kinderdörfer weltweit; Klaus F. Zimmermann, Director of the Institute for the Study of Labor; Angela Titzrath, new Deutsche Post DHL Board Member for Personnel; Andrea Kocsis, Deputy Federal Chair of the ver.di trade union; and Karl-Georg Altenburg, CEO JP Morgan Chase for Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The event was moderated by TV journalist and moderator Cherno Jobatey.